Collaboration between Regal Springs and Ace Aquatec for stunning solutions

Tilapia producer Regal Springs is collaborating with aquaculture technology provider Ace Aquatec, to introduce stunning solutions to their main processing facilities following on from successful trials in Mexico.

The collaboration comes after the producer was looking for a stunning solution to harvest their tilapia, one that would address growing demands for responsibly sourced foods. According to research conducted by OpenText, nine in ten consumers prioritise buying from companies with ethical sourcing strategies in place, and 83 percent willing to spend more on a product if it meets certain criteria.

The project, which took place in Mexico, has been two years in the making and began after Ace Aquatec was given UK£1 million in funding from the Humane Slaughter Association to provide stunning equipment to farms with no humane harvesting in place for finfish.

The company then approached Regal Springs, collaborated with Nautilus Collaboration and The Centre for Responsible Seafood (TCRS) to provide full EEG results to certification bodies to validate unconsciousness of fish and provide regulators with evidence to advocate for welfare improvements in the supply chain.

"This is a huge step forward from thermal stunning to a more humane and controlled stunning process, and with this towards better fish welfare," comments Emily McGregor, sustainability manager at Regal Springs. "As a side effect also process and quality parameters improved: reduced bruising, better quality of the fillets, better working conditions for staff. This supported Regal Spring's decision to move from pilot trials to immediate uptake of the equipment, and proliferation across their business."

Image credit: Regal Springs

Nathan Pyne-Cater, the CEO of Ace Aquatec called the project a "unique challenge", and one that provided them with a "general acceleration" for fish farming.

"We are now working with Barramundi farms in Australia, prawn farms in Europe and the trout sector in Canada as consumers and regulators insist upon more humane farming processes," he adds.

Using the pilot Humane Stunner Universal System (HSU) enabled Regal Springs to experience the huge improvements high welfare in-water stunning of fish brings.

"Sustainability has been at the heart of our Regal Springs business since the beginning over 30 years ago and in the spirit of continuous improvement we stand proud of pioneering new ways here with fish welfare," says Petra Weigl, Managing Director for Europe at Regal Springs. "Of course, retailers can be confident in accessing the very best in tilapia fish protein made viable through the way we raise and now harvest the fish – our ASC certification being testament to the quality we offer."

Ace Aquatec's HSU technology continues to be supplied to and used by fish farmers globally. In June of this year, smolt farmers Sævareid Fiskeanlegg signed an agreement with Ace Aquatec for their first in-water smolt stunner, and back in May Fresh by Design became Ace Aquatec's first distributor in the APAC region.

You can read about the smolt farmers story HERE and the supplier story HERE.

For more information on Regal Springs visit their website, HERE.

For more information on Ace Aquatec visit their website, HERE.